The National Sunflower Association Board of Directors met in early December in Pierre, S.D., to set the coming year’s budget and to elect officers.

Newly elected to the board’s executive committee as second vice president is Leon Zimbelman of Keenesburg, Colo. Zimbel-man is an irrigated confection sunflower producer and also operates several delivery locations for confections in Colorado.

Don Schommer from Munich, N.D., will continue as president of the NSA Board of Directors for the next year. Tim DeKrey from Steele, N.D., is board chairman, with Tom Young of Onida, S.D., remaining as first vice president. Treasurer is John Swanson of Mentor, Minn.

Arnold Woodbury of Wyndmere, N.D., replaces Dan Wiltse of Lisbon, N.D., who died in a farm accident this past fall. Mike Odegaard of BASF is representing the crop protection industry on the board. He is substituting for BASF’s Vince Ulstad, who continues to recuperate from a serious traffic accident that occurred last summer.

RMA Announces Price Elections for 2010

The Risk Management Agency announced its 2010 multiperil crop insurance (MPCI) price elections for oil and confection sunflower at $15.00 and $18.00, respectively. Last year’s MPCI elections were set at $20.35 for oils and $23.35 for confections.

RMA also announced that the final planting date for sunflower in Oklahoma and Texas will be changed from June 15 to June 25. This will give producers an extra 10 days to plant their crop and still have full insurance coverage.

Minnesota Growers Vote ‘Aye’ on Checkoff Levy

The referendum to establish a promotion order for sunflower in Minnesota has passed in a vote by the state’s sunflower growers. The checkoff will be four (4) cents per hundredweight. It will be used for production research projects, market development and promotion programs that benefit the sunflower farmer in the production and sale of sunflower products.

The Minnesota Sunflower Research & Promotion Council is planning to affiliate with the National Sunflower Association, thus giving Minnesota growers input and a voice in NSA programs. Minnesota is the fifth state with a grower checkoff to affiliate with the NSA.

The recently elected members of the Minnesota Sunflower Research & Council are John Swanson of Mentor, Kevin Capistran of Crookston, Steven Schmidt of Dumont, Jerry Hasnedl of St. Hilaire, and Tyler Nelson, Oklee.

NDSU Plant Pathologist Art Lamey Dies

Dr. Art Lamey, formerly extension row crop plant pathologist at North Dakota State University, died in December following a brief illness. Lamey was well recognized and respected in sunflower pathology circles, working closely with the USDA-ARS Sunflower Research Unit and other university plant pathologists to address key sunflower diseases like downy mildew, rust and Sclerotinia.

Lamey also coordinated the National Sunflower Association field survey for several years and helped design the survey procedures that continue to be used today.

Ron Meyer Rejoins CSU Extension Service

Agronomist Ron Meyer of Burlington Colo., has rejoined the Colorado State University (CSU) Extension Service as an area agronomist. Meyer had been with CSU prior to taking a position with Monsanto and was a key sunflower resource person during the early introduction of sunflower in the High Plains.

A graduate of North Dakota State University, Meyer was an agronomist at the NDSU-Carrington Research Extension Center before moving to Colorado. He also serves as executive director of the Colorado Sunflower Administrative Committee.

Talukder Joins Sclerotinia Research Team

Dr. Zahirul Talukder has joined the Sclerotinia research team as a postdoctoral scientist in the USDA-ARS Sunflower Research Unit located in Fargo, N.D. A native of Bangladesh, Talukder is a graduate of the University of Aberdeen in the United Kingdom, where he studied plant molecular biology. He completed his master’s degree in plant breeding and genetics from Bangladesh Agricultural University.

At the Fargo ARS unit, Talukder will be combining field nursery work with laboratory analysis in identifying additional genetic markers that will provide resistance to Sclerotinia. He will be working under the guidance of Dr. Brent Hulke, the unit’s sunflower research geneticist.

Talukder joins an expanding team of plant pathologists, geneticists and other molecular scientists with the Fargo USDA-ARS Sunflower Research Unit that is dedicated to finding Sclerotinia solutions. Funding for his position is coming from the National Sclerotinia Initiative.